Constitutionally, the title of president in Switzerland is only ceremonial. All seven members of the Federal Council, Switzerland’s executive, have equal power and are required to govern by harmonious consensus, a principle known as collegiality. This means that all federal councillors are expected to present a united front to the public even when they don’t […]
Two weaknesses in Swiss health insurance revealed by documentary
A recent documentary by RTS reveals two key weaknesses in Switzerland’s system of compulsory health insurance that make it difficult to claim for cancer drugs. Switzerland has a system of compulsory health insurance that covers most medical care and medicines, but not everything. Optional additional insurance can be added on top, but given the high […]
Covid: new cases in Switzerland remain high this week
This week, 19,237 new cases of Covid-19 were reported in Switzerland, up sightly (+7%) from the week before (18,055). This week there were 48 Covid-19 deaths compared to 44 the week before. However, recent death numbers can rise retrospectively due to data reporting delays. On Wednesday, the government extended the use of Covid certificates. From Monday […]
FILM: DELICIOUS – a beguiling, old-fashioned tale
10 September 2021. By Neptune DÉLICIEUX (Delicious) ***1/2 (vo French) This film by Eric Besnard is what the title evokes – delicious! The courtly interiors, the bucolic paysage, the delicate music, the inventive food, and the slow love that finally develops make it so. It’s a French film after all, based in the late 18th […]
Swiss government extends use of Covid certificates from Monday
On 8 September 2021, the Swiss government decided to extend the use of Covid certificates. From Monday 13 September 2021, a certificate will be required to enter bars, restaurants, museums, cinemas, theatres and pools, a system already operating in numerous countries, such as Italy. The decision comes on a day when the health authorities announced […]
Covid: vaccine side effects rare, suggest Swiss data
Over the 8 months from 1 January and 1 September 2021, close to 10 million doses (9.7 million) of the Moderna (6.4 million) and Pfizer/BioNTech (3.3 million) Covid-19 vaccines were given to more than 5 million people in Switzerland. Over this time there were 6,603 official reports of side effects, which represents 0.07% of doses. […]
Switzerland repatriating 80 Covid-19 patients
80 Covid-19 patients require repatriating to Switzerland. 10% of them require urgent transfer and some need intensive care, reported 20 Minutes. Lukas Engelberger, a director of the association of cantonal health directors, described the situation as complicated and said that it could have been avoided if people had responded to calls to get vaccinated. More […]
Covid patients more seriously ill than earlier waves, says ICU doctor
On 3 September 2021, the head of intensive care (ICU) at the Insel Hospital in Bern told the Berner Zeitung that those currently in hospital with Covid-19 are more seriously ill than during previous waves of Covid-19 infection. Stephan Jakob, head of ICU at the hospital said that of the 7 people currently in intensive […]
Swiss to vote on higher taxes for investors and company owners
On 26 September 2021, Swiss voters will decide whether to introduce a tax increase on money earned from company ownership and investments. The initiative named ‘Reduce tax on salaries, tax capital fairly’ aims to have income derived from investments and company ownership taxed at 150% of the rate applied to other income. The argument put […]
One more reason why Switzerland is so expensive
There are many theories on why the prices of certain goods and services are so high in Switzerland. A well-known economic phenomenon can be added to them. Theories that help to explain Switzerland’s high prices include, import restrictions and tariffs on products in protected industries like agriculture, high Swiss operating costs, anticompetitive deals struck by […]
